Enhancing Warehouse Efficiency with Hand Scanners and Tablets
In today’s fast-paced warehouse environments, efficiency and accuracy are paramount. Hand scanners and tablets have become essential tools for streamlining operations and ensuring seamless workflows. In our latest video, we sat down with Mark Hamlin from Insight Works to discuss the key considerations when selecting hand scanners and tablets for your warehouse. Below, we summarize the main points from our conversation about selecting these devices.
Key Considerations for Selecting Hand Scanners and Tablets
Environment Suitability:
- Cold Storage: Devices should operate at temperatures as low as -30°C (-22°F).
- Dust and Water Resistance: Look for IP67-rated devices for dust and water resistance.
- Specialized Environments: Consider sealed devices for areas with explosion potential.
Ruggedness and Drop Resistance:
- Drop Specifications: Devices typically range from 5 to 10 feet in drop resistance.
- Protective Accessories: Use cases like rubber boots to enhance drop resistance.
Device Types:
- Rugged Tablets: These are more expensive but durable and suitable for harsh environments.
- PDA-Style Devices: Lightweight, familiar, and cost-effective, but may lack physical keypads.
Performance:
- Software Compatibility: Ensure devices support native Android apps, responsive web pages, or green screen terminals.
- Processing Needs: Consider the type of software and whether it runs on-premises or in the cloud.
Ergonomics and Accessories:
- Pistol Grips: Common accessory for better ergonomics.
- Physical Keypads: Important for users wearing gloves or needing tactile feedback.
Mobile Device Management (MDM):
- Device Management: MDM software helps lock down applications and manage updates.
- Scalability: Essential for managing a large fleet of devices efficiently.
- Security: Prevents users from installing unauthorized applications on devices and keeps devices updated to internal policies.
Preferred Brands:
- Honeywell: Known for rugged and reliable products.
- Datalogic: Well-regarded in warehouse and point-of-sale environments.
- Zebra: Premier brand with top-of-the-line hardware.
- CipherLab: Specializes in RFID solutions.
- Keans: Ideal for direct part marking and OCR.
Conclusion
Selecting the best hand scanners and tablets for your warehouse can significantly impact operational efficiency. Consider the environment, ruggedness, performance, ergonomics, and management needs to choose devices that best fit your requirements. Watch our video with Mark Hamlin for a deeper dive into these considerations and some recommended devices.
Contact ArcherPoint for help making an informed decision when selecting scanning devices for your Business Central-managed warehouse technology needs.
Video transcript follows
I’m here with Mark Hamlin at Insight Works. Today, we are going to talk about hand scanners and tablets in warehouse settings. We’ll run through some common considerations companies make when integrating these devices with their warehousing.
Insight Works has been around for about 10 years, working mostly in the distribution and manufacturing spaces. Even before that, we’ve been supplying hardware for these environments. Personally, I have about 15 years of experience helping people choose the right devices and software.
When selecting a device, companies’ needs can vary dramatically. They might use devices in a cold storage facility, an area with a lot of dust, or a food processing environment with flour. Key considerations include resistance and resiliency. Specialized environments like cold storage or areas with explosion potential require sealed devices. Generally, the key factors are drop resistance and ruggedness. You can improve drop resistance with cases like rubber boots.
Most devices go down to about -20°C (-4°F), which is suitable for most freezers. Some cold storage devices go down to -30°C (-22°F). Most devices are IP67 rated, meaning they are dust and water-resistant, but not fully waterproof. They can handle rain and yard work. Drop specifications range from 5 to 10 feet.
Accessories are generally available across devices. For example, the Zebra MC9300 and Honeywell devices have a 10-foot drop spec and are quite rugged. PDA-style devices, which are like phones without physical keypads, typically have a 5 or 6-foot drop spec. You can get rubber boots or pistol grips to make them more rugged.
Rugged tablets, like the Honeywell device with a built-in scanner, are more expensive but last longer and can take a beating. Performance-wise, on-premises and cloud scenarios are similar. The type of software running on the devices is the biggest factor. Most WMS solutions are native Android apps. Some use responsive web pages or old green screen terminals.
Device features that stand out include pistol grips and PDA-style devices. Pistol grips are common accessories. PDA-style devices are popular because they are familiar, lightweight, and cost-effective. However, they lack physical keypads, which can be a drawback when working with gloves.
Mobile device management (MDM) is important for managing devices, especially if you have many. MDM software can lock down applications and manage updates. Without MDM, you have to manage each device individually. Microsoft Intune is one option, but it can be challenging to work with. We recommend other well-known MDM solutions.
We provide hardware recommendations and supply devices regardless of the warehouse management solution used. Common brands include Honeywell, Datalogic, Zebra, CipherLab, and Keans. Honeywell has a good product line, Datalogic is well-known in warehouses, Zebra is a premier brand, CipherLab specializes in RFID solutions, and Keans is used for direct part marking and OCR.
That gives us a good overview of the different devices and considerations. Thanks for joining me, Mark. No problem, I enjoyed being here. Thanks.